The Classical Guitar Ladder

How many classical guitarists and classical guitar luthiers can fit on one ladder?

Every year music schools across the United States generate an increasing number of guitar performance graduates combined with the new professional and amateur luthiers entering the market every year.

Each enters this field of a beautiful music and instrument inspired by what had come before with dreams of leading the life that those who came before us and gave us inspiration led.

If this is you, then being aware of these surroundings might seem scary and they might make you feel insignificant. Maybe not. But if you aren’t prepared to break the rules then you are insignificant. We all want to climb the ladder to success, but let’s ask ourselves an important questions. Did those performers and luthiers that created the position, the job - that created that ladder for us - did they do so by playing an established game, or did they do so in defiance of the status quo? What did they have to do to create that ladder / path to success that our colleagues and competitors are all trying to climb at this point in time?

It’s always a good time to put up new ladders - for new leaders to step up and create the new positions, niches and categories that will create the wealth that sustains our instrument and it’s music a little further into the future. And it’s only a little further, because innovation is becoming the new norm and the percentage of guitarists making a living by nostalgically preserving what has happened in the past MUST grow smaller and smaller as more and more guitarists struggle to fit on the same ladder.

If you are a professional guitarist or luthier seeking some kind of stable income, then don’t look back for an example to follow.

Build a new ladder that resonates with a new customer...and own it.

A thought inspired by Seth Godin’s recent blog entry: Getting Lost on the Shelf